PARISHO WITNEY RwJlslw80 Ch8dly 1129784 A ￿ Called to be a community of mercy and kindness 2025 Annual Report and Accounts (unaudited) Ann rt and Ac PARISHO WITNEY R8gis18r8d Ch8rty 1129784 CONTENTS Page No l. Legal and Admlnlstratlve Detall 2. Annual Report for the year ended 31 December 2025 3. Independent Examlne¢s Report 4. Parlsh of Wltney Consolldated Accounts for the year ended 31 December 2025 io rtandA ount ÈPARISHO WITNEY Registergj Gharty 1129784 l. Legal and adminlstratlve detalls Full Parochlal Name The Parish of Witney The churches of Si john the Baptist, Curbridge., St John the Evangelist, Hailey.. Holy Trinity, Witney,. and St Mary the Virgin. Witney. The Windrush church i.s affiliated ta the Parish. Charlty registratlon number 1129784 Church Office St Mary the Virgin. Church Green. Witney, OX28 4AW Tel.. 01993 779492 P.-mdll.. Bankers to the PCC BdrLlay.s Bank PLC, 30 Market Square. Witney, OX28 6BI Independent examlner Whitley Stimpson Limitl'd, 13.15 Hlgh Street, Witney, OX28 6HW The Folluwing are.SLhools and charities assuciated with the Parish of Wltney and whose transactiuns are nut incluLled In these accounts.. The Batt SLhool Trust (excepted chariry) The Rector is a trustee on induction and ChurLh Wardens are ex-officio trustee.s. Halley Church of England School Trust (excepted charity) The Rector is an L'x-ufflclo trustee and thL PCC appoints on ex-officio trustee. Collier attd Goose Ham twitney Ecclesiasti¢al Charity, no. 238857] The Rector is an ex.ufficlo trustee. the PCC nominate& two trustees and the Rector and the two nominative IrusLee5 appoint two co-optative trustee5. Witney EcumenSLal Youth Trust The PCC appoints two trustees whu are normally 0￿1(erS of the PCC. St Mary's Church {Witney] Preservation Trust (Charity no. 284576) 'rhe Rector is a trustee on induction or the priest in Lharge during an interregnum. The Friends ol Halley Church (Charity no. 293821) The"Vicar of Halley" is an ex-officio member of the committee. 2025 Ann l Re cco PARISHO WITNEY R8gister8d Charity 1129784 Membershlp of the Parish of Witney Parochial Church Councll and Deputy Wardens As elected at the Annual Meeting on 11 May 2025.. Clergy The Rev'd Dr Hester lunes Chair The Rev'd Dr Christopher Dingwall.lones The Rev'd james Elward The Rev'd Preb Mark Thomas Ms Kate Bank Mr jeremy Lasman ' St Marls Mr Ashley Arnuld MrAndrew Brown Hnly Trinity Mrs Charlutte Tremain Halley Ms Klrsty Morgan Curbridge Mr lan Galletley Mrs laniLe Stanlland i Ms Kate Bank5 Mrs Sue Hudges Mr jeremy lasman Mrs Linda Taft Churchwardens Deputy Churchwarden. Windrush Church Representative Deanery Synud (elected) Secretary (non-voting) Mrs Kate LDckwood member of the Standing Committee not a member ofthe PCC The Clergy, Churchwarden8 and Deanery Synud members are all ex.ofFicio members of the Council. IdLh LhurLh has places on the PCC for Depuly Wardens ex-()ffiLiO but these place5 can be relinquished and another representative elected from the church. 025 IRe Accou PARISHO WITNEY Registèred Charity 1129784 2. Annual Reportfor the year ended 31 December 2025 The Trustees are pleased to present thelr annual report and financial statements of The Parlsh of Witney Parochial Church Council (PCC) for the year ended 31 December 2025. The FinanLial Statements have bLen prepared In accordance with the accountinR policies set out in n(Ite I to the accounts and complies with the Charity's governing document, the Charities Act 2011 and Accounting and Reporting by Charities.. Stalemiint of Recummended Practice applicable to charities preparing their accounts. in accordance with the Financlal Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and the Republic of Ireland published on 2 October 2019 and effective from I january 2019. 2.1 Reference and Admlnlstration Details The charity's name is The Parochial Church CounL'il of the Parish of Witney and also ()perates undLir the name of The Pt7ri.sh (Jl, Witney. Charity Registration Number: 1129784 PrinLipal Office,, St Mary the VirgSn, Church Green, Witney, OX28 4AW 2.2 Trustees The Trustees and officers who served durln¥ the year and since the year end were as follows.. Mr Ashley Arnold Ms Kate Bank5 MrAndrew Brown The Rev'd Dr Christopher Dingwall-lones The Rev'd lames Elward (until S March 2026) Mr lan Galletley Mrs Sue Hndges The Rev'd Dr Hester Jones (from 7 lanuary 2025] MrJeremy Lasman Ms Kirsty Morgan Mrs Pippa Nash (from 25 February 2026) Mrs Ruth Sheppard (from 18 May 2025) Mrs janice Staniland Mr5 Linda Taft The Rev'd Preb Mark Thoma5 Mrs Charlotte Tremain Mr Richard Young 25 Annual Re PARISHO WITNEY Registsr•J Charty 1129784 2.3 Objectlves and Activities 'rhe main objectives of the Lharity are: promotlng the whole mission of the church - pastoral. evangelistic, social and ecumenical. The PCC is respnnsible for Luoperating with the mini.stry Team to meet this objective; enabling as many people as possible tu worship at our churches and to become part of our parlsh community. The PCC maintains an overview of actlvities throughout the parish and makes suggestions on how we can involve the many groups that live within our parish., and putting faith into practice in our serviLe% and wDrship thruugh prayer and scripture, music and saLramenL When planning our actlvities fi)r the year, the incumbent and the PCC have Lonsidered the Charity Commission's uidance un public benefit and the specifiL guidance on charities for the advanLement of rL,11￿1on. In particular. we aim t() enable ordlnary people to live nut their faith a5 part of our parish community thruugh.. Worship and prayer,. learning about the G()%pel,' and development of their knowledge and irust in jesu.s Christ as both Saviour and Lord. There is also provisiott of pa5tor(Il Lare lor people living in the parlsh. In particular, (jur aims for 2025 were.. to Lontlnue to Limbed our vision that we are called to be a c¢immunity Df mLirLy and kindne55, and to progress supporting strategies which will enable ihe realiY.alion nf this vision,. to encourage spirilual growth for all tho.se in the varlous cnmmunities we serve, through the creative use of technoloBY, and other channels ufLommunication', to ¢(Trnlinue to encourage regular pattern uf dally prayer through the Daily Oflice and other .spiritual di.£Liplines; to sustain the appreciation ofour Eucharistic ministry fur all who Wnfahip with us,. and to welcome and supporl our nL'w Team Rector, Rev Dr Hester lones, as she familiari5ed herself with the many aspects oFthe Pari&h of Wilney. b) To facilitate this w(Trrk it is important that we maintain the fabric of our four church buildings. In particular, our aims for 2025 were.. T() complete Quinquennial inspections for St lohn's Halley. and St Mary's,. TD develop and impletnent plans for priority projects for the renewal of the fabric ofst Mary5', To complete the repair of the roof at Holy Trinity,. and to continue our programme of maintenance of all the churches as outlined in the TllQSt recent quinquennial Inspections. 2025 Ann l R ortan counts PARISHO WITNEY RèJL8l&roO cnarfly 1129784 2.4 Achievements and Perforniance The vi%ion of the Parish continues to be that we should be a community of mercy and kindness. Our strategy is summarised In the diagram below.. Qldei Sw14', LT LliTruw. Growing Deeper In Gnd ehlldrcty Youlh Quiroii Ch C.4TL l*FiirL' In January 2025, we were delighted to welcome Rev Dr Hester lones a5 our new Team Rector. We have greatly valued her exceptional work ethic, considered approaLh and compassionate active Ilstening a.s she has engaged wlth not only the many and varled activities across the Parish but has also taken time to support so many Individuals. At a summer awayday, the Minlstry Team was asked to reflect on our vlslon and strategy as outlined above. Although we agreed it was stlll appropriate. a number of actlnns came out of that meeting to give certain priority areas greater focus, AS such, the struLture of our weekly Ministry team meetln¥5 have evolved, to allow fur one se.sslon per month to be dedlcated to the following '. Outreach and Youth Ministry (inLludlng schools) Wor5hlp, Liturgy and lunior Church Pastoral Care and Support of Older people Strategy review This approach, while Still in its relative infancy, has enabled more substantlve discussion5 to take place and has also had the benefit of widening thuse involved In each area beyond the membership of the leadership team. Separate focus group5 are elther in place or are being formed to lead on other prlorlty areas, e.g. the Benefice Environment group. Creater ijetail uf the cantlnued wide ranging work of the Benefice, both in nurturing our worshippin¥ Lommunities and in playing an active and valued role in the life oFour town can be found in our Annual Review. We remain hugely grateful for the commitment and care of our two 5tipendiary priests, Rev Dr Hester lones and Rev Dr Chris Dingwall.lones, as they beek to evolve and strengthen our ministrles, as well as to the wider Ministry Team and the large number ofvolunteers who contribute in so many ways. 025 Ann cc ts PARISHO WITNEY Registered ChaAly 1129784 2.5 Flnanclal Revlew The total incotne fur the year end 31 DeLember 2025 was £297.134 and total expenditure amounted to £296.170. The unrestrlLted income for the Parish was £249,737 while core operating costS' totalled £248,947, resulting in an operating surplus of £790. This outcome reflects the continued extraordinary generosity uf uur Longregations who responded to a further appeal in 2025 for funds to support the operating costs of the Parish. to the tune of nearly £22,465 (nel of Gift Aidl. In addition, the Parish was able to host a nutnber of majL)r festival.s and Lvcnts through the yL'ar in support of Parish Funds which raised just over £28,000. As a result, the Parish was able to cover ILS uperating Lusts in full including 100% payment of our allocated Parish Share. Although our Parish Share allocdtion is sub%tantial, it allows us tn be enj(iy the 5ervlees of twn full time stipendiary ministers, supported al times by a curate. This level of ordainL.d leader.ship resource is e.8%ential lo c()ntinuL' and grow the wise variety of ministries offered by the Parish not only to its congregation.s but impurlantly to the wider Witney community. Our unrestricted expenditure reduLed by 5Vo over 2024. This pleasing re.sult was achleved thriiugTh reductlnn in costs in a larxcs niimber of areas. After the sigynificant jump in L¥nergy co%ts' in recent year5, nur heating and lighting costs reduced by £4,518 over 2024. as a result of a renegotiatL,d lariff and much tik?hter Lonlrul over energy usage In nur churches, With the compl¥tion of the majority of the work% on the Holy Trinity roof, hiith restricted inc()me and expendlture were 5iRniflcanily lower than In 2024. Our full tlme paid youth worker. Laverne Williams ended her 4 year fixed term contract in Augusl, leading lo a further reduction In both restricted income and expendilure going forward. An altgrnative approach tu youth work bnth in church and in those schools which we serve has been implemented, with early slgns nf greal SULLe55. Wlthoul the financial burden of having to Slippvri a full time paid employee (a differenL remuneration model has been put in place flir the twn individual.s now leading this w(Irk). The Parish wa5 able tf) continue to support both thvse Sn our local CQTnmunity In financial need, which has beon hugely apprecialed given the on going co.st nf living crisis. A iotal of nearly £2,000 wa.s distributeij via fo()d vouchers from thi5 source. The nutnbers of Asylum seekers housed in the hi)tel in Witney has continued In fall uver the past year, and the hotel 15 scheduled to Ll(Ise In ihe Spring of 2026. Th£5 monie% left in the Asylum fund have heen increasingly used (in conjunctlun with Witney Ecclesiastical, a charity supported by all the Witney churches) to help those friends wh() are SULcessful in their applications to remain in the UK to buy essential items for their more permanent accommodativn. r)onations totalllng £ 1.850 were made from this fund last year. We expcct the fund to cluse in 2026. Finally, the Parish made donations totalling £2,735 to external charities in the year. Note. a numher of the restricted 'Charitable Giving, fund5 are showing an end of year deficit. This uften arises as a timing15sue hetween the receipt olfunds and the expenditure, especially over Lhe christma.s period and henLe the end of the Parish financial year. The respeLtive PCC/DCC5 will be asked to monilnr the.se deficits, and if not corrected via the expected inflow of fund5. to cover any mure'slructural, deficit from a tran.sfer from their general funds. 025 Annual R ndAc PARISHO WITNEY Raglsler9¢ Chadty 1129784 2.6 Rese￿e$ Pollcy The trustees have examlned the charity's requirements for reserves taking account uf the main risks tD the organisation. In 2018, the trustees reviewed these requirements and adopted a new Funds and ReservLS Policy. This requires that the PCC maintains an average of E7,000 over the year, to meet unexpected changes in cashflow, while each DCC (Hailey, Huly Trinity and St Mary's) maintains an average ol E5,000, to Luver minor maintenance issues. The poliLy assumes that unexpected major maintenance/repairs would be COVL'red by emergenLy appea15 to the respective congreLJatlons. TherLfore. in order to meet the agreed fundin8 policy for the year ended 31 December 2025, the trustees con.sider Ihat the amount required in reserves should be approximaiely £22,000. The level of xeneral reserves as uf 31 DeLLmber 2025 amounted to £52,449 significantly in excL'ss of the figure rLquired by (iur agreed poliLy. 2.7 Flnancial Rlsk Assessment The major financial ri.sks to the Charity are consldLired to be the following.. l. Reduction in planned givlnk? as a result of withdrawal of support from exlsting regular givers, putentially driven by on-going LO.St uf living pre5.sures. Alth(iugh it remains possible that we will Luntlnue to have lo hold an appeal for lunds lo cvver our i)perating costs in 2026, we have launched a stewardship Campaign in March 2026 with a tarset uf increased giving from both reRular danors, those nn the electoral roll who are not yet regular donors and alsu the many whi) attend services less frequently. 2. Reductlon in unplanned siving and InLomL from festivals and other majur events held in our churches, due lo poor weather. 3. Operating Cost inllatlun. as a result of increased UK inflation. 4. Majnr projeLt expendilure incrLa51n¥ during the execuliun phase uf a project [e.g. mid-way thriiugh a building project, fjl&TnifiLant C05t escalation from a supplier). MltlgaLed by the implementatinn uf more rigorous supplier and contract management prnLe55es for major projects, and the creation and proactive manag¥ment of funding contingency throughout the project'.4 lifecyLIe. S, Unexpected and unbudgeted expendlture, most likely related to the need for emergency repair5 and restoration to one of our historic buildings, ur as a result nf recnmmendations from recent Quinquennlal reparls (Both Halley and Si Mary's were subject to Quinquennial in.spectlOlls in 2025, with the repor15 nnw received). In particular, the St Mary's report highlights the need for sustained regular maintenance programme mo.stly relating restoration of ma.£unry. as well as the development of a plan to replace the 30 year old boiler with heat sources in line with the Church's policy re Net Zero. 'I'he PCC and relevant DCC. will retain oversight olany on-golng plans to respond to the recommendations in these reports, but It is planned to form focused working groups to both develop cohesive packets of work and progre5.5 the necessary external funding applications. 2025 Annual Re ort and Acc unt PARISHO WITNEY R&aisiered Charfiy 1129784 Z.B Strurture, Governance and Management The Parish of Witney Parochial Church Council [PCC) 1.% registered as a charity with the Charily Cotnmisslon. The Trustees of the parish are the PCC, which has the responsibilily of cooperating with the incumbeni, In promoting the whole work of the Church in the ecLlesiastical parish. The PCC is governed by two pieces of Church of England legislation, called Measures. I'hese are the Parochial Church Council (Powers) mea.sure 1956 and the Church Representation Rules (contained in SLhedule 3 to the Synodical Government Measure 1969, as amendLd], OvLirall responsibility for day-tii-ddy managemont remains with thL' incumbent, worklng In Llose collaboration with the mini.stry Team and the Standing Committee. I'he charity duvs not have paid employees with managetnent respunsihility. 2.9 Appointment of Trustees The trustees keep the compi).%iti(In of the PCC under review and will .seek to cD-upl additional memb¥r% with appropriate skills and expertisii shuuld the need arise. Interested parties are given details of the background of the charity in order to make them dWdfL' (If Lurrent activities. Licensed memhers uf thL, Ministry team dfLi ex olfiLIO trustees. Churchwardens are elected at the Annual Parishioners Church Meeting. All other trustees are elected at the Annual Parnchial Church Meeting in accordance wlth the Benefice CRR Scheme. Approved by the tru.stees on and signed on its behalf by.. The Rev'd Dr Hester lones, Rectur St Mary the Virgin Church GreL'n Witney OX28 4AW 2025 Annu ort ndA ts PARISHc* WITNEY R8gi5tered Charity 1129784 INDEPENDENT EXAMINER'S REPORT TO THE PAROCHIAL CHURCH COUNCIL OFTHE PARISH OF WITNEY I report to the Parnchial Church Council on the financial statements of I'he Parish of Witney for the year ended 31 December 2025, which are set out on page.s 10 to 20. Responslblllties and basis of report As thL' Lharity'.8 tru5teL's, you are respon.sible for the preparation of the accounts in accordance with the requiremenls uf the Charities Act 2011 ['the Act,). I report in respect of my examination of the Trust's aLLL)unt% Larried out under section 145 of thL 2011 Act and in Larrying out my examination I have followed all the applicable Directions given by the Charity Commission under section 14S(51 [b) nf the Act. Independent examlner's statement The charity's gross income exceeded £250,000 and l am qualified to undertake the examination by being a qualilied member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in F.nEldnd and Wale5. I have completed my c'xamination. l Lonfirm thal nil materlal matters have come to my attentiun In connL'Ction wlth the examlnalion giving me cause to believLi thal in any materlal respect, the acc